Matthew J. Tow
Encyclopedia
Matthew J. Tow is a highly regarded Australian singer-songwriter
and multi-instrumentalist
. Perhaps best known as the singer and guitarist of 90's Sydney indie band Drop City, Tow currently fronts international neo-psychedelic rockers The Lovetones
.
Rolling Stone Magazine has hailed Matthew J. Tow's songwriting as being worthy of Ray Davies, Bowie, Lennon and McCartney.
appearances and tour support for artists such as The Stone Roses
, Stereolab
, Yo La Tengo
and Manic Street Preachers
, Drop City disbanded in late 2000 amid what Tow described as a 'tidal wave of disinterest'.
. He has since released a further 4 albums in this guise. These releases are typically instrumental and far more experimental than Matthews other projects.
Colorsound Discography:
and his legendary San Francisco based psychedelic outfit The Brian Jonestown Massacre, touring the United States and the UK with them for 3 months as a guitarist. He also contributed 2 songs to there 2003 offering '...And This is Our Music'. Tow's opening track "Starcleaner" later also appeared on the The BJM retrospective Tepid Peppermint Wonderland.
magazine. The second album, Meditations, was released through New York's Tee Pee Records
in late 2005. Returning from shows in the US in late 2005 and also at SXSW
2006, The Lovetones toured to support Meditations Australian release in May 2006. In June 2006 The Lovetones completed a European tour across 12 countries with The Brian Jonestown Massacre in support of Meditations, released there through Tee Pee/Cargo Records, culminating in an album review in respected UK magazine Uncut.
The Lovetones also recorded their third album, Axiom, during 2006 with sessions split between Figment Studios in Hollywood and the Sydney Opera House
Recording Studio. The new album was released in June 2007 through Tee Pee Records.
Singer-songwriter
Singer-songwriters are musicians who write, compose and sing their own musical material including lyrics and melodies. As opposed to contemporary popular music singers who write their own songs, the term singer-songwriter describes a distinct form of artistry, closely associated with the...
and multi-instrumentalist
Multi-instrumentalist
A multi-instrumentalist is a musician who plays a number of different instruments.The Bachelor of Music degree usually requires a second instrument to be learned , but people who double on another instrument are not usually seen as multi-instrumentalists.-Classical music:Music written for Symphony...
. Perhaps best known as the singer and guitarist of 90's Sydney indie band Drop City, Tow currently fronts international neo-psychedelic rockers The Lovetones
The Lovetones
The Lovetones are an Australian psychedelic rock band with members:*Matthew J. Tow *Matthew Sigley *Serge Luca *Chris Cobb...
.
Rolling Stone Magazine has hailed Matthew J. Tow's songwriting as being worthy of Ray Davies, Bowie, Lennon and McCartney.
Splash
Matthew's first experience as a recording artist came with early 90's Sydney indie band Splash (which also included singer-songwriter Gavin Mclean), who released a 4 track EP titled Pendulum in 1991. The Tow-Mclean songwriting partnership would spill over onto early Drop City releases.Drop City
Matthew formed Drop City (also known as Drop City Three) in Sydney, Australia at the beginning of 1993. Later that year they recorded their first album A Revolution Of Purely Private Expectations which was released on the Red Eye label through Polydor in 1994. Two more albums were to follow; Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow and, Chiaroscuro. After 4 well received full length LP's, a handful of EP's, 2 Big Day OutBig Day Out
The Big Day Out is an annual music festival held in several cities in Australia and New Zealand in late January. It started in Sydney in 1992, spread to Adelaide, Melbourne and Perth by 1993, with the Gold Coast and Auckland joining in 1994...
appearances and tour support for artists such as The Stone Roses
The Stone Roses
The Stone Roses are an English alternative rock band formed in Manchester in 1983. They were one of the pioneering groups of the Madchester movement that was active during the late 1980s and early 1990s...
, Stereolab
Stereolab
Stereolab are an alternative music band formed in 1990 in London, England. The band originally comprised songwriting team Tim Gane and Lætitia Sadier , both of whom remained at the helm across many lineup changes...
, Yo La Tengo
Yo La Tengo
Yo La Tengo, sometimes abbreviated as YLT, is an American alternative rock band formed in Hoboken, New Jersey in 1984. Since 1992, the lineup has consisted of Ira Kaplan , Georgia Hubley , and James McNew .Despite achieving limited mainstream success, Yo La Tengo has been called "the quintessential...
and Manic Street Preachers
Manic Street Preachers
Manic Street Preachers are a Welsh alternative rock band, formed in 1986. They are James Dean Bradfield, Nicky Wire, Richey Edwards and Sean Moore. The band are part of the Cardiff music scene, and were at their most prominent during the 1990s...
, Drop City disbanded in late 2000 amid what Tow described as a 'tidal wave of disinterest'.
Colorsound
In 1994, Tow recorded a solo album You’re Only As Good As Your Sound under the moniker of Colorsound which was picked up by Summershine Records in Australia. The following year it was released in the US on Sub PopSub Pop
Sub Pop is a record label founded in 1986 by Bruce Pavitt and Jonathan Poneman in Seattle, Washington. Sub Pop achieved fame in the late 1980s for first signing Nirvana, Soundgarden, Mudhoney and many other bands from the Seattle music scene...
. He has since released a further 4 albums in this guise. These releases are typically instrumental and far more experimental than Matthews other projects.
Colorsound Discography:
| Album | Year | Label |
|---|---|---|
| You're Only As Good As Your Sound | 1994 | Summershine Records |
| Soundtrack For An Imaginary Life | 1998 | Spaceage Recordings |
| Auspicious Beginnings | 2001 | Third Stone |
| You're Only As Good As Your Sound | 2002 | Rayman Recordings |
| Kaleides Into Me | 2003 | Rayman Recordings |
| A Higher Station | 2004 | Rayman Recordings |
Brian Jonestown Massacre
In 2003 Matthew had the opportunity to join long time friend Anton NewcombeAnton Newcombe
Anton Alfred Newcombe is a singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and leader of the music group, The Brian Jonestown Massacre.-Music:...
and his legendary San Francisco based psychedelic outfit The Brian Jonestown Massacre, touring the United States and the UK with them for 3 months as a guitarist. He also contributed 2 songs to there 2003 offering '...And This is Our Music'. Tow's opening track "Starcleaner" later also appeared on the The BJM retrospective Tepid Peppermint Wonderland.
The Lovetones
The Lovetones released their debut album, Be What You Want, in 2002 through Bomp! Records. The album was reviewed in Creem and Rolling StoneRolling Stone
Rolling Stone is a US-based magazine devoted to music, liberal politics, and popular culture that is published every two weeks. Rolling Stone was founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner and music critic Ralph J...
magazine. The second album, Meditations, was released through New York's Tee Pee Records
Tee Pee Records
Tee Pee Records is an independent record label located in New York City in the United States, made popular by the signing of The Brian Jonestown Massacre.-Artists :*Ancestors*Assemble Head in Sunburst Sound*The Atomic Bitchwax...
in late 2005. Returning from shows in the US in late 2005 and also at SXSW
South by Southwest
South by Southwest is an Austin, Texas based company dedicated to planning conferences, trade shows, festivals and other events. Their current roster of annual events include: SXSW Music, SXSW Film, SXSW Interactive, SXSWedu, and SXSWeco and take place every spring in Austin, Texas, United States...
2006, The Lovetones toured to support Meditations Australian release in May 2006. In June 2006 The Lovetones completed a European tour across 12 countries with The Brian Jonestown Massacre in support of Meditations, released there through Tee Pee/Cargo Records, culminating in an album review in respected UK magazine Uncut.
The Lovetones also recorded their third album, Axiom, during 2006 with sessions split between Figment Studios in Hollywood and the Sydney Opera House
Sydney Opera House
The Sydney Opera House is a multi-venue performing arts centre in the Australian city of Sydney. It was conceived and largely built by Danish architect Jørn Utzon, finally opening in 1973 after a long gestation starting with his competition-winning design in 1957...
Recording Studio. The new album was released in June 2007 through Tee Pee Records.
External links
- http://www.thelovetones.com Official site
- http://www.myspace.com/thelovetones - The Lovetones on MyspaceMySpaceMyspace is a social networking service owned by Specific Media LLC and pop star Justin Timberlake. Myspace launched in August 2003 and is headquartered in Beverly Hills, California. In August 2011, Myspace had 33.1 million unique U.S. visitors....
- http://launch.groups.yahoo.com/group/thelovetones/ - The Lovetones Message Board
- http://www.rhino.com/RZine/rhinocasts/podcastkeeper.lasso?shownum=13 - The Lovetones interview/live performance at rhino.com (Nov 2005)
- http://www.adasam.plus.com/rayman/idx1.htm - Colorsound (Matthew J Tow solo project)